Tim Lewis (born December 18, 1961) is an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

coach and former player who is the

defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator (DC) is a coach responsible for a gridiron football team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, offensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's coaching structure, wit ...

for the

Boston College Eagles The Boston College Eagles are the athletic teams that represent Boston College, located in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level ( Football Bowl Subdivis ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

as a

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

for the

Pittsburgh Panthers The Pittsburgh Panthers, commonly also referred to as the Pitt Panthers, are the athletic teams representing the University of Pittsburgh, although the term is colloquially used to refer to other aspects of the university such as alumni, facul ...

and was selected by the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) in the first round of the

1983 NFL draft The 1983 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 26–27, 1983, at the New York Sh ...

. Following a neck injury that cut his playing career short after four seasons, Lewis began serving as a coach in the collegiate and professional levels and obtained his first head coaching position with the Birmingham Iron of the

Alliance of American Football The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football minor league. The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams in the southern and western United States, seven of which were located in metropolitan area ...

(AAF) in 2019. He also served as the defensive backs coach for the St. Louis BattleHawks and co-defensive coordinator for the

Arlington Renegades The Arlington Renegades are a professional American football team based in Arlington, Texas. The Renegades compete in the United Football League (UFL) as a member of the XFL Conference. The team was founded as the Dallas Renegades by Vince McMah ...

of the XFL. Lewis is the younger brother of former

Memphis Express The Memphis Express was a professional American football Franchise (sports), franchise based in Memphis, Tennessee. It was a member of the Alliance of American Football (AAF) during its single season in 2019. They played their home games at Lib ...

General Manager Will Lewis. Louis Riddick, former NFL safety and current ESPN broadcaster, is his cousin. Robb Riddick, another of his cousins, was a running back for the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

for eight seasons.

College career

Lewis joined the Pittsburgh Panthers in 1979, playing his freshman season on a team that included eight other future NFL players:

Dan Marino Daniel Constantine Marino Jr. ( ; born September 15, 1961) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons with the Miami Dolphins. He played college f ...

, Mark May, Dwight Collins,

Rickey Jackson Rickey Anderson Jackson (born March 20, 1958) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for the New Orleans Saints (1981–1993) and the San Francisco 49ers (1994–1995). He ...

Russ Grimm Russell Scott Grimm (born May 2, 1959) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a Guard (American football), guard for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). He has also served as an a ...

, Jimbo Covert, Bill Maas and Hugh Green, three of whom would eventually be inducted into the

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional football (gridiron), professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, 1963, the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of profes ...

. In his three seasons at Pitt, Lewis intercepted four passes and returned 26 kickoffs for 679 yards.

Playing career

Lewis was a first round pick (eleventh player chosen overall) out of the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...

by the

in the

. A standout cornerback, he was one of the more successful players on what was a relatively weak Packers team. He led or shared the team in interceptions in 1983 and 1985, finishing with a career total of 16. Lewis' 99-yard interception return for a touchdown against the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

on November 18, 1984, remains the Packer team record. His career was cut short by a severe neck injury suffered in a Monday Night game against the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

in the third week of the 1986 season.

Coaching career

Beginning his coaching career in 1987 at Texas A&M, Lewis served under his former college coach at Pittsburgh,

Jackie Sherrill Jackie Wayne Sherrill (born November 28, 1943) is an American former college football player and coach. He was the head football coach at Washington State University (1976), the University of Pittsburgh (1977–1981), Texas A&M University (1982� ...

. He would later spend time at

for the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

and the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

. The 2013 season marked his third year as the secondary coach for the Atlanta Falcons. In 2015, Lewis became the defensive backs coach of the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

, but was let go once the season ended as part of a complete coaching overhaul. He was named the head coach of the Birmingham Iron of the

on June 6, 2018. With two games remaining in the 10-week inaugural AAF season, Lewis and the Iron clinched a playoff berth, though due to the AAF's overall underfunding and ownership disputes, the playoffs were never played. Lewis then signed on as defensive backs coach for the St. Louis BattleHawks of the XFL, a position he held until the league folded in 2020. Following 2021 out of football, Lewis was named defensive coordinator for the

Houston Gamblers The Houston Gamblers were an American football team that competed in the United States Football League in 1984 and 1985. The Gamblers were coached by veteran NFL head coach Jack Pardee in both their seasons. They were noteworthy for introducin ...

of the relaunched

USFL The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...

. Although Houston struggled in 2022 with a 3–7 record, all three levels of Lewis's defense had a player named to the All-USFL Team; defensive back William Likely, linebacker Donald Payne, and Defensive Player of the Year pass rusher Chris Odom. Lewis was officially hired by the

on September 13, 2022 Lewis served as co-defensive coordinator with Jay Hayes, both who among numerous St. Louis Battlehawks assistant coaches during the 2020 XFL season. Numerous Renegades defensive players had been coached by Lewis previously in the AAF, XFL, or USFL such as Aaron Adeoye, Joe Powell,

Will Hill Will Hill III (born March 7, 1990) is an American football safety who is a free agent. He played college football for the University of Florida and was a member of Florida's 2009 BCS National Championship team. He was signed as an undrafted f ...

, and Donald Payne, as well as passer Luis Perez, Lewis' quarterback for the Birmingham Iron, who was acquired via trade mid-season. The Renegades only won 4 games out of 10 in the regular season, although the defense was consistently praised compared to the Renegades offense. Despite a losing regular season record, the Renegades made it into the playoffs and recorded two upset victories to win the 2023 XFL championship. On February 14, 2024, Lewis was hired by

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

as the defensive coordinator.

Head coaching record

References

External links

PFR
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, Tim 1961 births Living people American football cornerbacks Arlington Renegades coaches Atlanta Falcons coaches Birmingham Iron coaches Boston College Eagles football coaches Carolina Panthers coaches Green Bay Packers players Houston Gamblers (2022) coaches New York Giants coaches Pittsburgh Panthers football coaches Pittsburgh Panthers football players Pittsburgh Steelers coaches San Francisco 49ers coaches Seattle Seahawks coaches SMU Mustangs football coaches St. Louis Battlehawks coaches Texas A&M Aggies football coaches Sportspeople from Quakertown, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Bucks County, Pennsylvania